Awards

Mark Giordano Awards

NHL Foundation Player Award

Bio

Mark Giordano Bio

Replacing Jarome Iginla as captain of the Calgary Flames? Well, there have been easier acts to follow. Say, The Beatles on Sullivan or Sinatra at the Sands.

Giordano, the man picked in 2013 to inherit the honor from Calgary's all-time leading scorer, is considered the backbone of the franchise. A Canadian Olympic Team- and World Cup-worthy defensive talent, as well as the emotional, competitive barometer of his hockey team, Giordano is one of the sport's most respected leaders.

Replacing Jarome Iginla as captain of the Calgary Flames? Well, there have been easier acts to follow. Say, The Beatles on Sullivan or Sinatra at the Sands.

Giordano, the man picked in 2013 to inherit the honor from Calgary's all-time leading scorer, is considered the backbone of the franchise. A Canadian Olympic Team- and World Cup-worthy defensive talent, as well as the emotional, competitive barometer of his hockey team, Giordano is one of the sport's most respected leaders.

He also could be considered the ultimate self-made man. Undrafted out of Owen Sound of the Ontario Hockey League, Giordano generated little pro interest before signing with the Flames in the summer of 2005 following one year with Lowell of the American Hockey League.

The road to stardom proved to be a process. Over his first two pro seasons, the Toronto-born defenseman dressed for 55 NHL games and 78 for Omaha of the AHL.

Giordano, a restricted free agent, chose to move to Dynamo Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League for the 2007-08 season. He returned to North America after one season and his game grew steadily with Calgary.

In 2014-15, Giordano was having a career season -- he was the NHL's leading scorer among defensemen and was among the Norris Trophy frontrunners -- when a bicep tear in the final minute of a late-February game against the Devils in New Jersey ended his season.

That summer, Giordano signed a six-year contract extension with the Flames that runs through 2019-20.

Giordano won the NHL Foundation Player Award in 2016 for outstanding charitable work and community service.